UNDERSTAND YOUR SCORE

What do these three numbers say about you?

A credit score is designed to help lenders gauge how likely you are to become 90 days or more late in making payments. But the real key to improving your score is to better manage your credit.

A good score may mean you have easier access to more credit, possibly even at lower rates. But the real key to improving your score is to focus on managing your credit better. The consumer benefits of a good credit score go beyond the obvious. For example, underwriting processes that use credit scores allow consumers to obtain credit much more quickly than in the past.

Credit scores also help promote objective lending standards — diminishing discrimination and human error. And credit scores also help promote responsible lending by matching the appropriate types of credit to consumers based on their risk profiles. Perhaps most importantly, credit scores give borrowers an incentive to adopt better financial habits in order to receive the best terms and conditions from lenders.